A metastable rRNA junction essential for bacterial 30S biogenesis.

ABSTRACT: Tertiary sequence motifs encode interactions between RNA helices that create the three-dimensional structures of ribosomal subunits. A Right Angle motif at the junction between 16S helices 5 and 6 (J5/6) is universally conserved amongst small subunit rRNAs and forms a stable right angle in minimal RNAs. J5/6 does not form a right angle in the mature ribosome, suggesting that this motif encodes a metastable structure needed for ribosome biogenesis. In this study, J5/6 mutations block 30S ribosome assembly and 16S maturation in Escherichia coli. Folding assays and in-cell X-ray footprinting showed that J5/6 mutations favor an assembly intermediate of the 16S 5' domain and prevent formation of the central pseudoknot. Quantitative mass spectrometry revealed that mutant pre-30S ribosomes lack p

SUBMITTER: Sharma IM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6007441 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature